Surrounded by a sea of NFL stars under the Florida sun, the Pro Bowl quarterback worked his way down the rope line of fans clamoring for autographs and photos one day before the Pro Bowl Games in Orlando, Florida.
He tried on multiple occasions to break away, but the requests kept coming. Finally, the crowd petered out and Indianapolis Colts quarterback Gardner Minshew could sneak off toward a team bus that players such as Tyreek Hill of the Miami Dolphins and Sauce Gardner of the New York Jets had already boarded.
The scene seemed unexpected considering Minshew has started a majority of his team's games just twice in five NFL seasons.
"It's my first time," Minshew said of the Pro Bowl selection. "I don't even know how it happened. But, shoot, I'm happy to be here, man. It's awesome."
Granted, Minshew was a replacement player in the Pro Bowl Games, filling a vacant spot behind stars such as Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson, who did not participate. Other participants such as Houston's C.J. Stroud and Miami's Tua Tagovailoa were higher in the pecking order than Minshew.
Even so, Minshew acknowledged he never envisioned being a Pro Bowler under any circumstances seeing how he found limited opportunities on the open market as a free agent in the spring of 2023. He ended up accepting the Colts' contract offer of one year for just less than $3 million, doing so with the understanding that Indianapolis intended to draft a franchise quarterback.
But if Minshew has learned anything about life in the past year, it's that fate will have its way no matter how much you obsess over what might happen.
Minshew ended up being in the right place at the right time, relieving injured rookie Anthony Richardson, starting 13 games for the Colts and establishing a career high in passing yards (3,305). Minshew even earned an extra $2 million in incentives after playing at least 60% of the Colts' offensive snaps.
Now, as Minshew enters free agency again, he's doing so with a new mindset.
"Last year, I let it stress me out because you have all kinds of expectations," Minshew said. "But at the end of the day, you really don't know what's going to happen. You have to take it as it comes. Last year, I let myself get all worked up. But I ended up in the best spot in the league. I couldn't have asked for a better spot. So, you've just got to take it as it is, appreciate the opportunities that you get and make the most of them when you get them."
There are mixed opinions on how to characterize Minshew's 2023 performance. You could, for instance, say his success -- including a 7-6 record as a starter for a team that won four games a year earlier -- was the product of a savvy offensive coach (Shane Steichen) and a solid roster.
On the other hand, there's a strong case to be made that Minshew's competence as a backup is what kept the Colts afloat when Richardson was lost for the season to a shoulder injury in Week 5. Minshew displayed his leadership capacity, and the Colts rallied around him, finishing 9-8 -- one win shy of an AFC South title.
Either way, Minshew maximized his opportunities. And they were precious opportunities for a quarterback who had started just four total games in 2021 and 2022 with the Philadelphia Eagles. Now, Minshew has given the NFL something to think about as teams with quarterback uncertainty plot their next moves.
"I'm really proud of what we did this year," he said. "I came in with not many expectations, but we had a really tight team, a group that believed in each other, and I think you can really achieve some things when you do that. I know it didn't end the way we wanted but, man, the longer time goes on, the more happy I am about the season and the more grateful I am for all the good stuff. And I know there's ton of great stuff that we can build off of in Indy."
If that leaves the impression that Minshew is open to returning to the Colts, well, he is. But getting a chance to be under center for most of the season also rekindled his desire to be a starting quarterback again. Barring another injury to Richardson, that's unlikely to happen in Indianapolis.
"Of course Gardner wants to be a starter," Colts general manager Chris Ballard said. "That's what his makeup is... [Backup quarterbacks] want to be the guy. I get it. And they're competitive. It's hard for them to accept somebody telling them, 'Hey, you're the [number] 2.' This is what's great about Gardner. He was the 2, knew he was the 2, but he continued to work.
"He's a tremendous young man. Good player. Thank God we had him."
Sounds like another unpredictable offseason awaits Minshew. But those looming stressful moments seemed far away during Minshew's week in Orlando. He reconnected with old friends such as former Jacksonville Jaguars teammate Josh Allen, an edge rusher who was in the same Jaguars draft class as Minshew.
Minshew also chatted it up with Tagovailoa, contrasting some of the unique concepts Miami runs under coach Mike McDaniel with the creative schemes employed by Steichen in Indianapolis.
And when all that was done, there were more autographs to sign and more pictures, because that's the life of a Pro Bowl quarterback.
"Man," Minshew said, as he looked around at the surroundings, "this is really cool."